It has been several days now. The loss of Federer to Nadal in the Wimbledon still could not be accepted by most. Especially dear Fed Ex's fans. Neither could it sink into me. I still haven't recovered from it yet. Then I started to search more about him, & found some really interesting info about him. One could always log in to his
official website & learn more about this great master in tennis.
There are millions of his fans from all corners of the world cheering for him. I happen to bump into this well written note to him by a fan in US. Here it goes:
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Nothing’s Changed, Part 1
By Homer E. Mendoza
July 6, 2008
There’s really no good way to say this, so I’m just gonna tell it like it is. Roger Federer has lost Wimbledon. There’s a new king at the All-England Club, and he also happens to be the king of Roland Garros. After a monumental 5 sets, Rafael Nadal conquered Roger Federer, and with it, the ancient tournament the Spaniard describes as his favorite. I never thought I’d see the day, and what a dark day it was.
Oh, of course, records were made to be broken, and streaks were made to be ended. Everybody knows that. I just didn’t think it would happen today. Not against Nadal. Not when Federer went into the finals without having dropped a set, serving aces like a madman, with his patented forehand in full flight. These past two weeks, and for the first time in months, I was seeing the Roger of old, fleet feet silently hugging the baseline, crisp volleys punctuating points, that sweet backhand slice that barely skims the net, and that magical shotmaking only Federer can conjure up. He had a point to prove, and he was making his case heard very well. He looked relaxed, in control, defiant at times, and always at home.
Today, Federer was evicted from that home. Wimbledon, which had been his turf, and where the green grass had repeatedly rewarded the transcendent beauty and flow of his strokes, crowned a new champion. Nadal was already assured of tennis immortality, his feet of clay waxing golden in Paris for the fourth consecutive time a few weeks ago. Barely a day after his French Open triumph, Nadal dusted his shoes and commenced his campaign on grass, culminating in today’s stunning victory over the world number one.
For now, Federer’s status as the official number one player in the world is unchanged. It may only be a matter of time, though, before that, too, is taken away from him. Nadal already holds two of the four Grand Slams this year, while Federer has yet to win one. While Federer’s ranking points over the past 52 weeks are still enough to keep him at the top spot, Nadal is now virtually the new world number one.
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Nothing's Changed, Part 2
by Homer E. Mendoza
July 6, 2008
I don’t know how much longer I’ll have to wait until Federer finally solves Nadal, the way he’s solved Lleyton Hewitt, or arguably, David Nalbandian. I don’t know how much longer until he gets out of this funk he’s been in since the beginning of the year. I don’t know what this loss will do to his confidence, and his legacy. Because as much as I am hurting, I can’t even begin to imagine how Federer must feel. His genius is so perceptive, so sensitive to what is going on around him, that the same intelligent awareness that allows him to play such other-worldly tennis could also hurt him so much more, make him feel so much more pain, and make the proverbial agony of defeat so much more excruciating. So even though I cheered for and wept with him, along with every one of his fans around the world, for every winner and unforced error he made in this match, only he, only Roger, can truly know what this moment means. Only he, save the Immortal, knows the answers.
So I will wait, and pray, and hope, and believe. For this is the only thing I can do. I will do this for as long as it takes, through every loss, and every win. Because regardless of whatever changes, one thing stays the same. Roger Federer is the only tennis player I have ever seen that can inspire me with such ecstasy, such agony, such a profound depth of feeling that makes even defeat seem heroic, and paints so bitter a loss in such a beautiful light.
Never have I been so disappointed, as I was today. Never have I been so proud! For that, I owe him my loyalty.
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This is EXACTLY how I feel about him. He's the greatest & will always have his fans supporting him!
